2
Her fingers rubbed together unconsciously, but her face betrayed nothing unusual.
“About two years or so.”
After a moment of silence, Jiang Siyu’s voice sounded inside the car.
But she didn’t say why they broke up.
Noticing from the corner of her eye that Jiang Siyu didn’t want to dwell on it, Fu Lin pressed her lips together and, for the first time, didn’t press for the full story.
“Break up is break up. There are plenty of men out there.”
Though she said that, thinking of that face—one so handsome it could only be described as arrogant and domineering—Jiang Siyu couldn’t help but sigh.
There might be many handsome men out there, but ones who looked like Mu Qingye were truly rare.
The man stood one meter eighty-eight tall, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist, his head-to-body ratio rivaling that of a model.
What it meant to look slim in clothes and have a body that delivered when the clothes came off—Jiang Siyu had experienced that thoroughly during those two-plus years.
Recalling the springy, powerful feel of her fingertips landing on his abdominal muscles, Jiang Siyu’s heart inexplicably began to race.
When they first separated, it would have been a lie to say she didn’t regret the argument at all.
But Jiang Siyu knew very well in her heart that she and Mu Qingye were completely finished.
The matter of going back to an old flame… She didn’t believe she could fall for the same person twice.
Add to that the fact that her breakup with Mu Qingye had been truly ugly—in two years’ time, he had most likely forgotten her completely.
After that topic was set aside, Jiang Siyu didn’t have Fu Lin take her back to the Jiang residence. Instead, she went to a flat owned by Fu Lin.
The apartment was in a high-end residential complex in the heart of Haicheng’s financial district, with top-tier security and surroundings.
More importantly, the place was relatively close to where Jiang Siyu would soon be working.
At the door, Fu Lin registered Jiang Siyu’s fingerprint while saying:
“Tomorrow I’ll have someone transfer this property to your name. If there’s anything about the decor you’re not satisfied with, just hire someone to redesign it.”
Properties in this location had essentially been reserved before they even went on the market—even if others had the money to buy, they couldn’t get their hands on one. Yet Fu Lin gave it away without a hint of reluctance.
Jiang Siyu didn’t stand on ceremony with her either. After roughly organizing her clothes in the bedroom, she picked up a vintage red box and handed it to her.
Fu Lin raised an eyebrow in confusion: “What’s this?”
It looked like a decorative box. Realizing this, Fu Lin’s expression turned somewhat sour:
“We don’t need to be this distant with each other, do we? It’s just an apartment.”
Jiang Siyu sat on the bed and rolled her eyes at her upon hearing that: “It’s a gift I prepared for you before I came back to the country. What kind of nonsense are you imagining?”
With that, she tossed the box toward Fu Lin, who scrambled to catch it.
After hearing Jiang Siyu’s words, Fu Lin knew she had misunderstood. She promptly opened the box.
When she saw what was inside, Fu Lin snapped the box shut with a smack, her delicate fox-like eyes narrowing as she glanced at Jiang Siyu, then carefully opened the box again.
“Oh my god~”
Fu Lin gaped dramatically, staring at the antique-grade imperial green jade bangle inside the box, and demanded of Jiang Siyu with a tone of exasperation:
“How could you throw my precious like that?”
Jiang Siyu: “…”
“Come on, my big star, you couldn’t catch it from that distance?”
Fu Lin stroked the bangle in the box, feeling the cool smoothness of the jade, and no longer caring about Jiang Siyu’s earlier toss, snapped the box shut with a grin and tucked it away.
“Thank you, my lady, for your generous gift.”
Fu Lin’s only hobby was jadeite and gemstones. She had plenty of top-quality jadeite in her collection, but pieces made from old material were few and far between.
This bangle struck Fu Lin right in the heart.
But… the moment she saw that bangle, Fu Lin also confirmed one thing.
That was—Jiang Siyu hadn’t exactly been idle during her years abroad.
Otherwise, with the Jiang family having cut off all her financial support, buying this bangle would have been a case of wanting it but being powerless to do so.
With a light chuckle, Fu Lin happily carried her gift and left.
This was the Jiang Siyu who never disappointed.
Night fell.
After washing up, Jiang Siyu stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing out at the city where she had lived for twenty years and been away from for four.
The phone she’d tossed aside rang several times. Jiang Siyu glanced at it from the corner of her eye, and upon seeing that familiar string of numbers, calmly looked away.
Ji Yanheng’s number hadn’t changed all these years. Jiang Siyu still remembered it, but she no longer answered the moment she saw the call like she used to.
After letting the phone vibrate until it stopped, Jiang Siyu switched it to silent, lay down on the bed, and began catching up on sleep.
Meanwhile, at the Jiang residence, Jiang Yiruan watched Ji Yanheng’s face grow cold from repeatedly calling Jiang Siyu with no answer, and pushed the glass of water in front of her toward him.
“Maybe sister has already gotten a cab. Let’s wait a little longer, and she’ll be back.”
Seeing that Ji Yanheng still wore a grim expression after she spoke, Jiang Yiruan glanced up at her mother sitting across from her. After receiving a hint from her eyes, she added considerately:
“Ah Heng, if you’re really that worried, why don’t we make another trip to the airport?”
Ji Yanheng was already tempted by Jiang Yiruan’s suggestion. The rain was so heavy today that it would indeed be difficult for Jiang Siyu to hail a cab anytime soon.
But… staring at the phone that kept showing “no answer” with each call, Ji Yanheng felt an inexplicable tightness in his chest.
In his memory, Jiang Siyu had never once failed to answer his calls.
On a whim, Ji Yanheng tried calling Jiang Siyu once more, but the result was no different.
Still no answer.
He rose to his feet with a grim expression, and Jiang Yiruan quickly stood up as well. “Should I go with you to pick up Sister?”
“No need.” Ji Yanheng sidestepped the hand Jiang Yiruan extended toward him and left without looking back.
Behind him, Jiang Yiruan barely managed to keep her expression in check. Only after Ji Yanheng was completely out of sight did she turn and kick the sofa in frustration.
“Jiang—Siyu!”
Jiang Yiruan spat out the name through gritted teeth, her tone dripping with icy malice.
“Four years. Why is it that the moment you come back, you still manage to capture all of Ah Heng’s attention?”
During those four years, Jiang Yiruan had tried every possible way to get close to Ji Yanheng.
In the eyes of outsiders, she seemed to have already won the favor of Ji Yanheng, the heir of the Ji family. But only she knew the truth.
After Jiang Siyu went abroad and cut off all contact, Ji Yanheng had grown increasingly cold toward her.
In recent times, she could barely even get a chance to see him.
Yet, the moment he learned of Jiang Siyu’s whereabouts and her impending return, Ji Yanheng suddenly agreed to meet her again.
Jiang Yiruan didn’t want to dwell on why Ji Yanheng had suddenly been willing to see her again. All she knew was that she absolutely could not let Ji Yanheng’s feelings for Jiang Siyu reignite.
Otherwise, all her efforts and grievances over the years would amount to nothing.
With that thought in mind, Jiang Yiruan called the person she had stationed at the airport. Upon learning that Jiang Siyu had already been picked up by someone, she let out a disdainful cold laugh.
Noticing her expression, Li Shuwan, who had been calmly sipping her tea on the sidelines, asked:
“Any good news from the airport?”
Jiang Yiruan put down her phone and walked over to nestle beside Li Shuwan as she sat down:
“Jiang Siyu was picked up long ago. Even if Ah Heng goes to the airport now, he won’t be able to meet her.”
“Is that so.” Li Shuwan set down her teacup, a gentle smile playing on her lips—though the warmth never reached her eyes.
“Not surprising in the least. I wonder how Ah Heng will feel when he finds out Jiang Siyu was already picked up, while he’s still rushing through the rain to the airport to fetch her himself?”